Hydraulic hayfork and boom



f Aug. 5, 1952 DE wlTT c. sHArrUcK HYDRAULIC HAYFORK AND BOCM Filed Jan. 14, 1949 2 SHEETS-SHEET l 1N VEN TOR ArroR/a/YJ aqqacaooo| DE wrrT c. sHATTucK 2,605,919

HYDRAULIC HAYFORK AND BOOM Aug. 5, 1952 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Jan. 14, 19/9 INVEN TOR.

A na/Veys Patented Aug. 5, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE YHYDRAULIC HAYFORK AND BOOM A De Witt C. Shattuck, Velva, N. Dak. Application January 14, 1949, Serial No. 70,9181Y 3 Claims. (C1.21;4 147) This invention relates to tractor-mounted and operated devices and the like, .and particularly to a mechanically-operated hay fork and extension boom for carrying the same.

It is one important object of thepresent in- A vention to provide a structure of the character referred to wherein .a vertically swingable boom, having means at its outer end for engaging a quantity of hay or the like, will be adjustable under the control of an operator between a lower position in which it extends substantially horizontally, and an upper position in which it is inclined, with said boom to `be elevated above a ground surface in not only theupper position thereof, but also the lower position, thus to be properly disposed relative to a pile of hay a portion of which is tobe engaged by said means.

Another important object `is to provide a hayengaging means atvthe outer end of said boom including a rake frame having spaced, opposing groups of tines, which frame will. be so mounted upon the boom as to extend substantially hori-A zontally in the4 variouspositions to which the boom is swung, thus to locate the. rake framel properly for engaging a quantity of hay between said groups of tines, in all positions of the boom.

A further important object is to provide stop means cooperating betweenthe rake frame and boom, that will be particularly adapted to eiect the retention of the rake frame in a substantially horizontal position, in both the upper and lower positions of the boom.

Other objects and advantages ofthe invention will appear in further detail as the specification proceeds. Y

In order to facilitate ready comprehension of this invention for a proper appreciation of the salient features thereof, thelinvention isrillustrated on the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, andrin which: ,Y

Figure 1 is a plan view. of a tractor equipped with a hydraulically-operated hay fork and boom extension made according to thel invention ,and embodying the same in a practical form; 1

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same tractor and hay fork and boom equipment lillustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a hay fork part to disclose the construction thereof;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectiontaken on line i-AinFigureli Figure 5 is a 'section taken online 5 -5 Ain Figurel; A

Figure 6 is a fragmentary side trating a 1 nodiication. f, i

elevation illus'- vThroughoutthe` views-,.the.. same. Areference numerals indicate the :same or like parts.

Referring to the drawings in detail, a tractor, generally indicated at 1, has a frame 8 rearwardly provided with the axlehousing. 9,having the rear supporting wheels I Il, I0 at the ends thereof, while forwardly a pair of wheels II are capable of Abeing steeredfrom the steering wheel I2 in conventionalmanner by an operatorV sitting on the seat I3 at the rear of thetractor. .The rear wheels ID are xed on vthe rear shaft `or axle I4 rotatable in axle housing 9 and driven by the engine I'5 mounted on the tractor frame 8. Upon both sides of thehousing are fixed forwardlydirected lugs I 6,` I6, to. which a pair of booms I'I, II are pivotally connected by means of .bolts I8, I8. At the sides of the frame 8, but rearwardlyV of the front wheels II are fixed apair of depending lugs I9 in which is mounted a pivot shaft 20 for vpivotally supporting a pair vof hydraulic upright cylinders 2|, .2| provided with upwardly-extending `plungers 22. through the upper ends of whichextends a transverse suspension shaft 23 from which in turn depends alpair ofsupporting links24 connected by pivot pins 25 to a pair of `upwardly-extending lugs 26 fixed on booms II.'Y To the vlower .portions of hydraulic rcylinders 2Iv are connectedra kpair of hydraulic fluid lines 21, 2,'I1which. are connected with the conventional hydraulic pressure Ysupply means on the tractor (not shown),so that hydraulic-pressure uid, is communicated to cylinders 2|' for operating plungers 22 in amanner which forms no actual part of the present invention. e

In order to utilize theboom equipment just described. on tractor 1, avpowertake-off driven pump 28 is fixed on a bracket29 onrtheV rear portion of vframe 8 beneath the seat I3 by .means of screws 30 and provided with a rpulley 3lv driven through a belt 32 by the power take-off `p-ulleyr33, the pump being Acontrolled by a manually-operated lever 34. To the rear of the .pump 28 are connected -two hydraulic lines, or pipes 35, Sti which extend forward alongside'the engine I5 for operating mechanism which Awill now -be detailed specifically.

Upon'the forward ends of'booms II, IIare secured a pair of boomextensions by means of bolts 38, 38 extending through the forwardends of said boom members I1 and a pair of upwardlyprojecting lugs 39 o nthe boom extensionsrl and a short distance rearwardly of the lugs 39 also by a pair of straps 4l envelopingr the rear ends of x the'boom extensionsz'l and the forwardends of boom members |1, while being secured together at the upper portions thereof by means of screws or bolts 4|. The net result is that the boom extensions 31 are held together to form rigid units at each side of the tractor, and extending forwardly therefrom and capable of being raised or lowered by means of hydraulic plungers 22 previously described. Both boom extensions 31 are secured together by means of a pair of transverse tie rods 42, 43 secured at the endslby headsV 44 and nuts 45 to prevent spreading'of the booms and their extensions, and also to provide a mounting upon rod 42 for the rear end of an auxiliary hydraulic cylinder 4G having the rear. lug 41 pivotally mounted on the mentioned, rod, the two previously-mentioned hydraulic pipes or hose lines 35, 36 being connected to theforward and the,VV

rear ends of the mentioned hydraulic cylinder 4 5. From the forward portion of hydraulic cylinder 46 extends a plunger 48 connected by a pivot pin 49 to the rear end` of the lever 50 pivoted on apair of upwardly-extending bent rod posts 5| upon their upper mutual connection 52, a further pivot pin 53 connecting the upper endl of'lever 50. with a link 54. The arrangement is such that forward movement of plunger 48 will swing lever 50 clockwise and thus' draw link 5.4 rearwardly., While on the other hand, rearward movement of plunger 45 will produce counter-clockwise movement of lever 5ft about its pivot pin 52 with consequent forward movement of link l54. Upon the forward ends of boom extensions 3.1 aresupported a'pair of forwardly-extending rake bars 55, 55 by means of lugs'56 pivotally connected to the rear ends of bars 55 by means of pivot pins 5,1, while upon the rear ends are fixed a pair of;rearwardlyextending lingers 58, 58. Co-operatingwith thelmentioned rearwardly-extending fingers 58 are a pair of C-brackets 59, 59. secured to the forward ends of extensions 31, 3.1 by means ofY bolts or-screwsA 60 in such manner that the'upper and lower hooks 5|, 62 serve to limit the pivotal movement of linger 5Bv about pivot pins 51 in order to provide predetermined positions for the rake bars 55 in raised and lowered positions of the boom members. The latter are'connected together atv the outer ends thereof by means of transverse rake 63 provided with downwardly-extending rake tines 64.

Upon the rear portionsof the two rake bars 55 are fixed a pair offbearings 65, 6'5-for a rake shaft having a pair of collars 61 secured thereto upon the outer sides of bearings' 65 in order to prevent axial movement of shaft 66V. UponY the intermediate portion of shaft 66-is fixed a verticallyprojecting arm 68 brazed or welded thereto, while upon the forward end of previously-mentioned link 5 4 is a fork 69 pivotally connectedl to the upper end of arm 68 by means of a pivot pin 1U, so that partial. rotation of lever 50 by means of plunger 48 extending slidablyV from hydraulic cylinder 46 will cause corresponding oscillation of rake shaft 66. Upon the latter are' fixed a series of rearwardly-extending lugs 1 I, 1| to which are secured individually a group offrearwardly and downwardly-arched fork tines 12, 12 by means of rivets or screws 13, so that if Ashaft 66'is partially rotated in clockwise direction, the depending arcuate tines 12 will be swung forwardly towakrdethe downwardly-extending rigid tines 64 of ra e 3.

The arrangement is such that if control lever 34 is operated to control a valve (not "shownlV through pipe or hose to the forward end of hydraulic cylinder or jack and thereby withdraw the plunger 48 rearwardly into the cylinder and thereby in turn swing lever counter-clockwise and thus push link 54 forwardly and with it the upper end of arm 68 to partly rotate fork shaft 65 in counter-clockwise direction, with the result that the tines 12 are swung rearwardly toward the tractor, opening thefork` and increasing the distancev between the tines 1 2 and the rake tines 54. If the boom structure is then allowed to descend to its lowest position, the rake structure including bars and rake 63 will tend to gravitate with the tines 64 lowered into the hay or like forage which is to be loaded on a truck or hay wagon, while the fork tines 12 remain in rearwardly-withdrawn position. If at this time the manual control lever 34 is shifted to cause the pump 28 to supply pressure fluid to hose or pipe 36, which in turn supplies the pressure fluid to the rear end of'cylinder 45, plunger 48. will be urged forward from the position shown in Figures 1 and 2, swinging lever 50. clockwise and thereby drawing upper link 54 rearwardly, which obviously swings the normally upright arm 68 toward the rightv or clockwise, and thusV swings fork tines 'l2 forwardly toward rake, 63. withits downwardlyextending tines 6 4. When such operation ofthe fork shaft 6,6 occurs while the boom structure is in its, lowermost position adjacent toa haystack, for example, fork tines 12.will4 cooperate with the rake tines 64 to. grip a; quantity of. hay between them, and if thenjthe conventional apparatus on the` tractor is Y operatedA to. supply hydraulic fluid to` the upright hydraulic .jacks 2| through. tubes 21 in order to raise plungers 22, apostion will be attained which is inidicatedin ,brokenv lines at 14. The rearwardlyextending fingers 511i of. thev two rake bars 55 are capable of swinging a short distance clockwise about pivot members. 51l according. tothe higher or lowen contact that rake 63 would make with the hay in the stack. When the boomrstructure` isv raised with a load of hay between the fork and therake, the rake unit includingl rake members 55,` andrrake/ 62nwilltend t0 gl'avitate downwardly about. pivots 51: until ngers 5.8. strike; the upper. hooks 6|. of the C- brackets 59 withtheresult that the. rake unit is substantially horizontal, althoughV the 'boom unit as a whole is. inclined. upwardly in a forward direction. If at thistimethe ,charge of hay held between the fork tines 12, as indicated at 15, is heldover ahay wagon or hayrack for.. the purpose of dropping the. hay intothe same, manipulation of control lever 34 in the opposite direction to that in which it was previously 'shifted' will `cause the, pump to. project hydraulicY pressure, fluid through` hoseorpipe 35Ltoth'e forward end of jack orcylinder 46 withtheresult that plunger 48 will move rearwardly to swingllever 50 counter-` the two previously-described-y rake bars 5-5jb eing connected at the forward ends of boom extensions 31,- a pair of fork bars 11 are pivotally connected thereto in similar fashion, as alreadydescribed, for-.rake bars 55, .andl instead of. having aisingle fork .shaft-transversely mounted upon the bars, tw'oforkv sh'aftsy'l, 'I9 are mounted in thebearings Sil, 8| inspaced-apart relation, the intermediate; portions of. s the shaftsv Abeing :provided with upwardly-'projecting operating arms 82, 83 havingelongated slots.84,.85 in the upper ends thereof, while depending from shafts 'i8 and 19 are a pair of. groups of fork tines 86, 81. The provisionv of the..slots184, 85 effects a progressive decreasing Vof the speed ofmovement of the tines 86, 8'! towardeach other during their travel from the dotted to the full line positions thereof seen in Figure 6. Thus, the tines move rapidly during their initial movement toward one another, but as the hay is grasped thereby and compressed somewhat therebetween, the tines move more slowly, to assure a firmer grasp upon the hay. Above the fork frame members 11 is mounted a two-way double-action hydraulic cylinder 88 by support means, not shown, having the hose or pipe 35 connecting with two branch pipes 39, 9G communicating with the ends of cylinder 88, while the other pipe 36 communicates with the center or intermediate portion of cylinder 83. Within cylinder djust referred to a pair of plungers Si, 92 are reciprocable in symmetrically opposite directions withA plunger shanks 93, S4 projecting slidably out through the ends of the cylinder and upon their extremities provided with studs 95, 96 extending slidably into the slots 8d and 85 in the outer ends of arms 82 and 83.

The arrangement is such that a pressure fluid is supplied to pipe 35 and thereby the branches S9 and 90 so as to communicate the fluid pressure to the interior of the ends of cylinder 88. The plungers or pistons 9| and 92 will be propelled from the ends toward the central position, as indicated at 91, d8, which will cause the plungers 93 and 94 extending outside of the cylinder to draw the arms 82 and 83 from the position shown in full lines to that shown in broken lines at 99, |00, which obviously opens the fork tines 86 and 31 apart, as also shown in broken lines. Intermediate the two pistons is a xed stop within the interior of cylinder 88 in such position that when the pistons have reached the same they are prevented from approaching each other further and instead are disposed in proper position to be operated on by pressure fluid entering through pipe 36 into the center or intermediate portion of cylinder 88, whereupon the pistons will be forced apart again to the end positions originally referred to When the arms 82 and 83 on shafts I8 and 19 will be forced apart in opposite directions, with the result that fork tines 86 and 8l are brought together again in position to clutch a load of hay between them.

Manifestly, variations may be resorted to and parts and features may be modied or used without others within the scope of the appended claims.

Having now fully described my invention, I claim:

1. In a hydraulic hay fork for attachment to a tractor, a longitudinally extending boom having one end extending forwardly of said tractor and having its other end mounted on said tractor to endirelationiwith:respect: to:;sald roneendiof saidsboom Vand .mounted .l on f the :latter 'for vfree pivotal movement :about an axisextendingftransversely of said boom upon swinging movement of said boom, a first groupofspacedrakes arranged transversely; of and'depending from said Yrake frame and mounted adjacent said one end of the latter for movement toward and away'from said rake frame, a second group'of-rakes .disposed in face to face spaced Yrelation with respect to said first group of rakes and-'mounted on and depending from the other 'endpf said-iframe, fingers rigid l with-l the' rake' frame and!y extended rea'rwardly and' longitudinallyof -the1.boomfrom'said pivotalr mounting 'of thel frame? 'upo'n theboom, C-shaped brackets' securedtothe boom and em'- bra'cing saldiy fingers ,f the -u'p'p'e'r endsand Ylower ends Yof. l thef brackets engaging il theA fingers? Ton downward'V and upward' swinging movement, respectively, of therake'fram relative tothe boom and limiting the-*rake frame against swinging in either direction beyond f positions in which, in both the upper and lower positions of-the'boom, the rake frame is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane, and hydraulicA means disposed longitudinally of said rake frame and operatively connected to said rst group ofrakes vfor effecting the movement of the latter toward and away from said rake framef 'i i 2. In a hydraulic hay fork for attachment to a tractor, a longitudinally extending boom having one end extending forwardly of said tractor and having its other end mounted on said tractor for swinging movement about and axis extending transversely of said tractor, said boom being swingable between a substantially horizontal lower position and an inclined upper position and being elevated when in said lower position above a surface on which the tractor is supported, a rake frame having one end positioned in end to end relation with respect to said one end of said boom and mounted on the latter for free pivotal movement about an axis extending transversely of said boom upon swinging movement of the latter, a first group of rakes depending from and arranged transversely of said rake frame and mounted adjacent said one end of the latter for movement toward and away from said rake frame, a second group of rakes disposed in face to face spaced relation with respect to said first group of rakes and dependingly mounted on said rake frame for movement toward and away from the latter, fingers rigid with the rake frame and extended rearwardly and longitudinally of the boom from said pivotal mounting of the frame upon the boom, C-shaped brackets secured to the boom and embracing said fingers, the upper ends and lower ends of the brackets engaging the fingers on downward and upward swinging movement, respectively, of the rake frame relative to the boom and limiting the rake frame against swinging in either direction beyond positions in which, in both the upper and lower positions of the boom, the rake frame is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane, and hydraulic means disposed longitudinally of said rake frame intermediate said rst and second groups of rakes and operatively connected thereto for selectively effecting movement of said first and second groups of rakes toward and away from said frame and from each other.

3. In a hydraulic hay fork for attachment to a tractor, a longitudinally extending boom having one end extending forwardly of said tractor and having its other end mounted on said tractor for swinging movement; ahoutan.4 axis extending transversely. of;Y said; tractorr said boom. being swingable betweenA a. substantially horizontal lower position and an inclinedcupper position and beingA elevated. when in. said lower position above a. surface on. which the4 tractor is supported,v a rake frame having one end, positioned in endto end, relatonwithrespect to saidV one end of said boom and, mounted, on the latter for free pivotal movement about an axis'` extending` transversely of said. boom upon, swinging; movement, of the latter, a.` first group of rakes depending from and arranged0 transversely of said; rake* frame and mounted adiacenti said-one-end of: the'latter for movement towardandi away from; said. rake frame, a secondgroup ofcrakes disposed in face toI face, spacedl relation `with; respect to said` first groupv of rakesl andg dependingly mounted' onsaid rake frame for movement toward and away from the latter, ngerslrigidfwith the; rake, frame and extendedrearwardly and; longitudinally of the boom from. said; pivotal mounting ofl the frame upon the boomV C-shaped brackets. secured to the boom and embracing,l said ngers, the upper ends andlower ends of thev brackets engaging the fingers on downward. and upward. swinging movement, p respectively, of: the rake framel relative to the boom andy limitingy the rakeira-me against swinging in either direction-beyond posi- 8 tions in which,V in both the upperandlower positions of the boom, theA rake frame is disposed iny a substantially horizontal plane, hydraulic` means disposed longitudinally of said rake frame intermediate said rst and second groups ofrakes and operatively connected thereto for selectively effecting movement of said first and second groups of; rakes toward and away from said frameand'from eachother, and manuallyactua'blefmeans operatively connected to said boom forl positioning the latter in select positions ofV its swinging movement.

DEWITT C. SHATTUCK.

REFERENCES CITED Thev following references areof record in the file of this .patenti UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,773,478 Dovel A- A Aug. 19, 1930 2,410,567 Christiansen Y Nov. 5, 1946 2,412,845 Stevens' v Dec. 17, 1946 2,418,251 Drott Apr. 1, 1947 2,427,461` Johnson s Sept. 16, 1947 2,474,374 Shattuck June 28, 1949 2,482,612 Drott-et al. Sept. 20, 1949 2,488,767 Drott et al. ,Nov. 22, 1949 

